Hide And Go Seek
by wingedgypsii
Summary: [Neji x Tenten] Things happen when you're stuck in a forest with someone. Especially if it's someone you like. And I mean like like.
1. Intensive Training

It's a beautiful spring morning in the Village of the Leaf. Delicate pink cherry blossoms bloom in the stately trees surrounding the small but pretty house where Tenten lives. She curls up in a cushioned seat by the open window and stares outside. It hasn't been such a beautiful day in quite a while. Pastel sunlight filters through the window onto her, warming her all over. A gentle breeze tickles her along the arm.

Today is a good day. Today, she –

Okay, not. A girl can dream.

Today is a dreary day, as it has been for, what? A whole week and a half? Tenten runs her fingers across the windowsill. Never has she been so bored! She would prefer to be on a torturous mission where the bad guy tortures her and makes her look like a tortured maiden in despair and torture, than bored like this! For weeks now she and her teammates have received only the kind of mission where you only get your nails broken and dirty. Not the kind where you break the bad dude's bones with a wooden stick. Fishing, helping out at various farms, digging holes, substituting for a manicurist, walking old ladies across the street, tying little snot-nosed brats' shoes… Tenten buries her head in her arms. She knows she's being selfish, but she… is… so… freaking… bored… she wants to hit something. Yes. That's it. Hit something. She will do that. With her fist already raised, she gets up. She will go to the training ground with the wooden post where she, Lee, and Neji always train together under the guidance of their most mature and calm cough cough Gai-sensei. Yes. That is where she will go. She goes toward the door and slowly… slowly…

So drammmmaticalllllly and sslllllowlllly and drawwwwwwwnnnnn outttttttedllly (you know, like they do in the movies, where the poor kid is on the outside side of the door, and he needs to go inside to save the day and the girl and kill the bad guy, and then he accidentally makes the floorboards creak, and the bad guy inside, on the other side of the door hears and goes and opens the door, but he always take a couple of hours to turn and rattle and shake and bang and clang and bam and click and clack the doorknob, and the kid on the outside is shaking with fear, but he will not run awau! No he will not! Because he is a brave golden exalted hero! So he stays there, his knees shaking, for a few hours, and then the bad guy _finally_ opens the door, and then I don't know the rest, but you get my point. It took Tenten while to open the door. But you gotta forgive her, since it was with her left hand, since she's right-handed, and her right hand was raised into a fist, ready to punch. Oh, I should finish my sentence.) Tenten opennnnsss the dooooooooooorrrrrrr.

Anyway, she opens the door, and starts to step outside, when she sees those cheesy ahem ugly cough orange leg warmers that she knows oh-so-well, and the green jumpsuit of one of her best friends, the Beautiful Green Beast of Konoha! She looks up.

"Hey, Tenten-kun! Guess wha-" Lee starts, but is unable to finish, because

WHAM.

Tenten, unable to curb herself, has accidentally punched Lee with her right hand, which, you should remember, was ready to strike whatever go in her way. Lee flies in the air, high as a bird in the sky, landing in a tree in the dense forests outside of Konoha.

"Feeling a bit angry today?" asks another familiar voice. Neji! Tenten steps outside and looks around, and then sees her other teammate Neji, arms folded, standing on her roof, cool, calm, and collected, as usual.

"Oh, hi, Neji. What are you guys doing here? Is something going on today?" she queries.

"Not really," Neji closes his eyes and shrugs. "I woke up with Lee banging on my window, yelling at me to hurry and get up since Gai called some emergency meeting at our usual training place today. And of course, he told Lee to tell us."

"That's right!" yells a flash of green (and ugly orange leg warmers) as Lee comes running full speed towards Tenten's house. Then, graceful as always, he crashes into a fence post, knocking it over and falling flat on his face. He looks up. "So what are you waiting for! The springtime of youth waits for no one! Let's go! Gai-sensei is already patiently waiting for us!"

He runs off, creating a trail of dust behind him. Neji jumps off the roof, and he and Tenten walk casually and unhurriedly after him.

They walk in silence, as usual. Neji's not a talker. And Tenten, well, although she does like to talk, she's not as talkative as most other girls. Lee and Gai-sensei do more than enough talking for the four of them.

Upon reaching their usual training place, the silence is expectedly broken by a very loud Gai shouting: "Ah! Tenten! Neji! What are you doing, walking so slowly and lazily! Come, hurry up, for the springtime of youth is already here and quickly waning away! Isn't that right, Lee!"

Lee salutes. "Yes, Gai-sensei!"

"Exactly!" winks Gai, grinning his shining (in)famous grin. (He and Lee must take very good care of their teeth.)

Neji closes his eyes again and sighs, Tenten puts her hands behind her back and looks sheepish. "What are we going to do today, Gai-sensei?"

"As soon as you and Neji line up in your proper positions, I will tell you!" promises Gai, flashing is nice-guy pose.

Painstakingly, the two normal teammates line up, facing their sensei. They stand in their regular position: Neji in the middle, with Lee on his right and Tenten on his left.

"Today," bellows Gai, "we are going to have a training like we never have before!"

"Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!" shouts Lee, jumping up and down excitedly. "Yes! Yes! Yes!"

Sighs from the other two.

"We are going to have a type of training that will test your skills in… sneakiness!" Gai pretends to creep around stealthily until he trips on a rock. "Oof!"

Sighs.

"And not only sneakiness, but also strength!" Gai lifts his right arm up to show off his muscles.

Lee looks on adoringly.

"And not only sneakiness and strength, but also speed!" He runs around in circles like a whirlwind, then stops. "And not only sneakiness and strength and speed, but also your tracking skills!" He shields his eyes and looks into the foggy distance.

_This is going to be easy_, thinks Neji.

"And last but not least, your ability to outsmart the enemy!" Gai attemps what seems to be a smart look, failing infinitely.

_Tell us the instructions_, yawns Tenten inwardly.

"Wow! Wow! What are we going to do, Gai-sensei! Tell me, Gai-sensei! I want to know! What are we going to do? What are we going to do?" Lee yells, jumping around and waving his arms like a beserk monkey.

With all the drama he could possibly muster, Gai-sensei slowly puts his hands on his green hips and grins like a Cheshire cat. "We," he roars, making Tenten and Neji cover their ears, "are going to…"

The three genins stare at him, waiting in deep suspense.

"**PLAY HIDE AND SEEK!"**


	2. He's Acting Strange

Tenten and Neji are dumbstruck. With wide eyes, they look at their sensei, then at each other, then at Gai again. Lee, on the other hand, does an odd dance, screaming, "Yes! Yes! Yes!" over and over again.

Unable to believe her ears, Tenten cautiously asks, "Are you… did I hear… hide and… what?"

Neji folds his arms and frowns. "You want us to play hide-and-go-seek? That's so juvenile, though. I didn't even think that you, Gai-sensei, would come up with such a ridiculous plan."

Lee stops dancing. Angrily, he storms right up to Neji and looks him in the eye. He extends his index finger onto Neji's nose. "Who do you think you are to make fun of Gai-sensei?" he retorts indignantly.

Neji gently pushes Lee's forehead. Lee starts to fall backwards, waving his arms frantically, but falls flat on the ground anyway. Neji shakes his head. "Stupid."

Gai quickly intervenes in the 'fight' between the abominable Neji and the adorable Lee. "Now, now," he says, helping Lee up, "don't be brash. You are all young, so you quarrel over miniscule things, but Neji, this is no way to behave!"

Neji glares at his sensei. "But to play hide-and-go-seek! Gai-sensei, surely you must be joking!"

Gai smiles. "Oh, no, this is no joke. Indeed we are playing this youthful game in the lovely forests of Konoha for training today. But I tell you, Neji, Tenten, Lee, this is no _ordinary_ game, no, it is not!"

Tenten is still confused. "But what do you mean? Isn't it just a game where the three of us hide, and you find us?"

"It is based on that," replies Gai smoothly, "but it has some twists in it."

Lee stands up straight. "What kinds of twists, Gai-sensei?" Even Neji is somewhat interested now.

Gai steps back. "We will be split up into two teams." He makes a peace sign with his right hand. "Lee and I on one team-"

"Yes! YES! OH YEAH! All right! I'm with Gai-sensei!" hollers none other than Lee.

"And Neji and Tenten on the other team."

Neji and Tenten look at each other, then away.

_As usual, I'm paired with him_, thinks Tenten. She used to have a huge crush on him, back in Academy days, but after they graduated, that feeling just sort of… floated away. _But why do I still feel excited when I'm paired with him for something?_

_So I'm paired with Tenten_, observes Neji. _Well, she's strong, but-_

Gai interrupts his thoughts. "Lee and I will be the finders first. We will count to three thousand, then take off with the springtime of youth hot on our heels! We will find you, and when we do we will fight. The team with the first person to become unconscious loses. And then we switch: Neji and Tenten will be the finders, and Lee and I will be the hiders."

He stops for a moment to let this set in.

"Any questions?"

None.

"Okay. Have you all your shinobi equipment?"

Tenten, always ready, nods. Neji doesn't need any equipment, so he also nods. Lee, well, is incapable of using shinobi equipment, so he nods too, excitedly.

"Well, then," Gai yells, "Neji and Tenten, be off!"

Neji and Tenten flash away.

"Okay, now, Lee, are you ready for this!" Gai shouts.

Lee salutes faithfully. "Yes, Gai-sensei!"

"Then we will commence to count!"

"Yes, Gai-sensei!"

Then, in unison: "One! Two! Three! Four! Five…"

Neji and Tenten rush off. "Where are we going to hide?" asks Tenten. Neji has always been 'the boss'. He used to be, well, rather uncaring, but since the Chunin exams last year, he's gotten a lot nicer.

Neji quickly scans the forest with his Byakugan. "Lee and Gai aren't the best at tracking, so I think we'll just 'hide' in some random tree and wait till they find us."

"I don't think they will find us though," says Tenten.

"Yes," agrees Neji, "I think you're right."

Although it's morning, it's fairly dark since the sun is completely covered by a sky blanketed in clouds. Dark, billowing, huge, ominous clouds. Tenten looks up. "I think… it smells like its going to rain."

Neji looks up too. "Yeah- it's going to-"

And then suddenly the heavens open up and it starts to pour. And I mean seriously pour. Within 45 seconds, Tenten is completely soaked. Neji, though, expels some chakra around him so that his doesn't get wet.

"Do you think that Gai and Lee will cancel this so-called training now?" asks Tenten, her teeth chattering pitifully.

"No. You know them and their springtime of youth thing; they won't cancel no matter what," frets Neji. They stop on a large branch of a tree. Then he looks back at his teammate. Her pale pink shirt is completely soaked, while he is warm and toasty in his little chakra bubble. Despite his telling himself _It's her fault for not wearing a jacket in this type of weather_, it makes him feel really, really selfish. Before he can stop himself, he is taking off his jacket and holding it out to her, revealing a tight black shirt edged with fishnet at the collar and sleeves. It shows off every perfect muscle on his flat, die-for abs. "Here, take it," he mutters, avoiding her eyes. "You need it more than I do."

"Wha- but, Neji, you'll-"

"Just take it, okay, Tenten?" he says rather roughly.

"Well, okay… thanks, Neji…" she answers cautiously. It's all she can do to not stare at his stomach, anyway. She goes on the other side of the tree trunk so that he can't see her change. "If you peek, Neji…" she threatens.

Neji puts his hands up innocently. "I won't peek. Promise!"

Tenten shakes her head doubtfully. "Okay…"

She goes back over behind the tree trunk. _Thank you so much, Neji_, she whispers to herself. She really is freezing cold. Konoha winters are merciless. Tenten, shivering all the while, takes off her pink shirt, revealing a skintight white spaghetti strap shirt underneath. Should she take that off? She decides not to, since it's not really that wet. The pink shirt she shoves into one pocket. But she has trouble making heads or tails of Neji's enormous jacket- the arm holes are almost as big as the collar. She shakes her head_. How does he manage to put this on every morning, anyways?_

On the other side of the tree, Neji is doing all he can to keep his eyes closed. _Must not peek!_ But despite his efforts, he can't help but open his eyes and use his Byakugan to look over at the other side of the tree. (Every guy peeks at least once in his life, and Neji, however serious he is, is no exception. As the Legendary Sannin Jiraiya said: "Men are all perverts!" So it must be true. He's a Sannin after all.) He watches, almost breathlessly, as Tenten slowly takes off her pink shirt. _Oh, gosh_, he tells himself, _have you no shame? What are you doing?_ But he can't peel his eyes away. To his disappointment and relief, she still has a skimpy white spaghetti strap under it. Staring all over her well-developed body indulgently, the thought of how pretty she is flickers across his mind. _No!_ he tells himself, though. _I must not think that way._ He rips his eyes away.

Tenten finally figures how to put on Neji's jacket and comes back over to where he is crouched on the tree limb, trying to forget what he just saw. His jacket is huge on her. Had the collar been any wider, it would have fallen off. "Okay, Neji, lets go!" They rush off.

_Why did I think like that?_ Neji wonders. _What did I do that for?_ It is true, he is 15, but he has never paid any attention to girls that way until now. _Tenten is just a friend_, he tells himself, _and she must remain that way._ But for the very first time, a spark of curiosity and doubt grows in his mind. He shakes it off.

Tenten, on the other hand, is not thinking such sentimental thoughts. She is merely grateful to Neji for lending her his jacket, although it's getting very wet already. Neji, looking back at her, realizes this. Out of both pity and worry for his jacket, he stops and reaches for her hand.

"Huh?" asks Tenten, clearly confused. "What's your hand for? Should I pay you for lending me your jacket?"

"No, moron," he replies gruffly. "Hang on, and you won't be wet."

"Uh." Tenten is shocked. Neji is pretty much claustrophobic when it comes to people. Lending her his jacket was surprising enough, but _this_?

"Hurry up!" Without waiting for her, he grabs her hand and drags her along into his chakra bubble, keeping both her and his jacket nice and dry and warm.

Tenten is still trying to figure things out. _Neji is acting very strangely right now._

_I am acting very strangely right now_, Neji says to himself. _But what's done is done._ It would be rude and uncaring to release her hand now. And anyway, her hand feels very nice against his skin- soft, cold- _No! Neji! Shake such thoughts away from yourself!_

Anyone watching the two of them would have been completely surprised, seeing a serious-looking 15 year old boy holding the hand of a rather wet-looking girl about the same age. Odd expressions go over the boy's face, first bliss, then shock, then anger, then confusion, over and over again. As for the girl, her face remains confused, with a slight hint of indulgence.

Back at the training field –

"One thousand five hundred forty-two! One thousand five hundred forty-three! One thousand five hundred forty-four! One thousand…"

It has been raining now for a little while. Gai suddenly looks up into the sky. "One thousand five hundred forty-eight! Why, it is raining! I didn't even notice it! Did you, Lee?"

"One thousand five hundred forty-nine! Gai-sensei, no I did not!" salutes Lee. "Gai-sensei, surely you are not thinking of quitting, are you, Gai-sensei! The springtime of youth waits for nothing and no one, not even the weather!"

"Ah!" Gai smiles widely. "You are correct, Lee! That's my boy!" He smiles proudly, tears running down his cheeks.

"Thank you, Gai-sensei!" Lee, too, is crying a river- no, an ocean. He runs into his mentors arms, hugging him tightly. (And somewhere, in the distance, the sun sets in a splendor of orange and yellow, and the waves break on a romantic, dramatic beach.)

"Now!" yells Gai, letting go of Lee, "we will once again commence to count!"

"Yes, Gai-sensei!" The two of them cover their eyes once again.

"One thousand five hundred fifty! One thousand five hundred fifty-one! One thousand five hundred fifty-two! One thousand five hundred fifty three…"

Hand in hand, Neji and Tenten keep their fast pace. They are now almost a whole mile away from Konoha. Neji has ceased using his Byakugan, and is only trying to make his way through the foggy forest.

"Are we going to stop yet?" pants Tenten breathlessly.

"A little more, then we'll stop," he replies. Truth is, he doesn't really want to stop anytime soon. _As long as I can hold her hand, I'm satisfi- argh! Why do I keep thinking such things!_

Suddenly, Neji steps on a too-thin branch and falls on the floor with a hard oomph, with Tenten landing right on him. Or, that's how he expects it to happen anyway. But actually, he finds himself and Tenten (whose hand he is still holding) falling…

falling…

falling…

falling…

falling down into a deep deep pit in which he can't see the bottom. Tenten gives a small yelp. Neji is too surprised and (though he'll never admit it) scared to do the smart thing, which would be use his Byakugan. Tenten tries to stand on the sides of the pit, but it is too wet and slippery for even chakra to hold on to.

"What the crap is this!" yells Neji.

"I don't know!" Tenten wails right back.

And so hand in hand, they keep falling… to what seems to be their sure deaths…


	3. Sacrifices

Unless you've fallen into a pitch black hole in the ground – so pitch black that you can't even see your hand if you put it in front of your face – dragging someone behind you or being dragged, then you could not possibly know what that fall was like for our dear hero and heroine. They fall for what seem like hours in that stale, musty air inside that deep, hellish pit.

_Think, Neji!_ he tells himself, activating his Byakugan. Quickly but carefully he scans the hole. It is about 20 feet in diameter and (gasp) one-half of a mile deep. At the bottom is (gulp) a hard floor that seems to be made of… marble? Yes, there is no question about it – the floor is marble. But as he and Tenten plunge deeper and deeper down, he realizes something odd about the hole- it seems to be the entrance of a huge underground temple!

"Neji?" asks Tenten nervously. She is trying to keep calm, but seeing the troubled look upon her ever-stoic teammate makes her feel even more uneasy than she already is.

Neji can't reply; he's too awed by the splendor of this giant burrow. In the room that they are falling into alone, the floor and walls and ceiling, held up by pale brown granite, are made of pure marble, white with elaborate, smoky swirls. Exotic rugs cover part of the floor; the rest is left bare. On fancy antique sea cherrywood display racks and tables are delicate bead lamps, lighting the place with small eerie glows. But to Neji's surprise and dismay, he can't see any details of any rooms beyond this one- they are all blocked by Sealing Barrier Tags.

"Neji! What is it?" yells Tenten. "What do you see?"

"This… this isn't just a big hole, Tenten," he pronounces carefully, choosing his words with precision. "I think it's a temple or palace of some sort!"

They are growing ever closer to the looming marble floor…

Meanwhile, back at the training ground, yet again:

"Two thousand nine hundred ninety-eight, two thousand nine hundred ninety-nine… THREE THOUSAND!" the green beasts roar simultaneously.

They open their eyes eagerly. "Lee," asks Gai, "are you ready to track down your teammates!"

"Yes, Gai-sensei!" Lee salutes.

"Very well then! Let the springtime of youth put the wind under our feet!" He doesn't know what that means, but it sure sounds impressive.

_Wow, Gai-sensei uses such beautiful words!_ "Yes, Gai-sensei!" _I don't know what it means, but it must be a very beautiful and youthful thought!_ He and his matching mentor rush off in a flurry of dust, rain, and green (and ugly orange leg warmers).

They are almost face-to-face with the ground now. Without thinking, Neji reaches out with his free hand and expels some chakra. It forms a small protective wall around him and Tenten, so that when they finally fall…

Neji and Tenten land on the hard marble floor, shaken but unhurt. Neji's protective chakra drifts away after cushioning their fall, to some degree. Tenten finds herself sitting in Neji's lap with her eyes shut tightly. He is still holding her hand.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Neji," she apologizes, her pale complexion turning pink. She quickly gets up from her (comfortable) position and releases her hand from his hold. _How in the world did I land like that?_

Ever charming, Neji grunts as he gets up, shaking his head. "I'm sorry, Tenten," he says, not looking at her, "I was foolish. I didn't use my Byakugen. Next time…"

"It's okay, Neji," assures Tenten in a sweet voice. "Everyone makes mistakes, you know."

Neji shakes his head. _How can she understand? What did she ever have to go through that can compare like my past?_ He just doesn't know how to explain to her how this is a bigger deal to him than she makes it out to be, so to keep things simple, he doesn't try to.

Tenten looks around. A single plain lantern sits in a corner of the large room. It is lighted, casting shadows on the wall that dance around like eerie little goblins. Tenten picks it up. "Are you coming, Neji?"

Neji snaps out of his self-pitiful reverie. "Coming… for what?" he asks, not knowing what she has in store for the two of them.

_And I thought he was a genius, thinks Tenten_, rolling her eyes inwardly. "You said this is a palace or something. We need to find a way out, and maybe there's an exit not far from here."

Neji frowns. _There is no exit nearby_, he says to himself. _Not a visible one. _He knows there isn't – he can just feel it. But he decides not to tell Tenten, not yet anyway – it won't help his present situation.

He follows Tenten into one of the dark hallways on either side of the room that they landed in. The flame in the lantern makes the walls glow with ominous solemnity. Hyuuga Neji is not one to ignore these kinds of things. _This place reeks of bloodthirst and evil intent_, he mutters to himself. _We shouldn't be here._ With every step an inner voice is telling him to turn back before it is too late. But he has no choice.

The hallway is lined with frowning portraits of serious-looking men and women, looking old and grim, bent by time. Their acrylic eyes seem to watch Neji and Tenten carefully as the two teammates slowly make their way down the marble floor.

For several minutes the two of them creep along, lighted by the teasing flame of the lantern, along the cool, moist walls. No words are exchanged between them – it feels, to them, that they are being watched and must be as quiet as possible.

At last they stop, panting, not from exertion but from fear. In front of them is a large, regal door, complete with golden door-handles that glint sadistically as Tenten lifts the lantern up to it. The ornate sneering face of a large egotistical-looking spider leers at them from its position, carved into the sea cherrywood double door. It seems to be laughing at the two genins. Two Sealing Barriers Tags are stuck at the bottom crack of the door, prohibiting any unwanted visitors from coming in.

Tenten starts to whisper to Neji, "Can you look-"

Neji shakes his head dejectedly. Not even the Byakugan can see past a Sealing Barrier Tag.

Suddenly, a voice penetrates the door into the alert ears of Neji and Tenten. "… must be displeased tonight…" hisses a silky voice, sweet and smooth, like the herbal medicine tea that he is forced to drink a cupful of every night. It is vital to his curse-seal, to make sure that it doesn't activate itself unexpectedly. The medicine tastes sweet, but it leaves a bitter feeling in his mouth and stomach, and it always reminds him of the past which hurts him the most.

The voice continues. "We must hurry before the moon rises, for it is not easy to find the two sacrifices that Maejirase-sama has chosen. If we don't…"

Neji and Tenten look at each other, wide-eyed with fear and confusion. Sacrifices? Who is this Maejirase-sama, who would choose sacrifices? Are they for someone else, or himself?

"…Maejirase-sama will slaughter someone in place of them tonight," another voice cuts in, this one nasal and cruel.

"Yes," says the sweet voice. "I, with the aid of some of the others, will depart and look for the sacrifices. Prepare the other necessary items."

"I will do that," answers the other voice. "Take care. Bring Wakasaryou with you. She is young, but skilled."

And then the door handles start to shake.

And turn.

And rattle.

And shake.

And clang and bang and bam and click and clack.

Back to our beautiful green beasts…

Gai and his mini-me of a student rush along in the forest speedily. Faster than sound, they check every tree and bush within a 30-foot diameter around Konoha.

"Ah! I see they have hidden themselves well!" Gai sensei shouts merrily from the top of a tree. "I am very proud of those two! Well, Lee, now we must show them the greatness of our youth!"

Lee pops out of a juniper bush, leaves scattered in his shiny hair. "Yes, Gai-sensei!"

It's still raining hard. The ground is soaked in pools of rainwater, making every step that Gai and Lee take splash mud onto their sexy green suits (and ugly orange legwarmers).

They continue on their way, sloshing in mud and singing an old ninja song.

Neji and Tenten, stunned in fear, quickly look around for a place to hide. As quietly as they can they put the clattering lantern on the floor and use chakra to 'nail' themselves onto the ceiling, hoping to be unnoticed.

Tenten puts a hand over her heart. It's beating so loud that she's sure anyone can hear it from miles away.

The heavy old double door opens, each side at the same time as the other. The creaking of old rusty hinges cry out of years of no care. A dark, tall, slim figure steps out slowly, glowing in the light of the lantern.

The man's face is long and thin, with large, childlike eyes, a narrow nose, and slender mouth, twisted into a smirk. Straight lavender hair falls down to just below his shoulders, at which is tied a dark blue cape. An elegant old-fashioned male's kimono of blue, white, and gold is draped and wrapped around his body.

Neji and Tenten hold their breaths. This man looks familiar to Tenten, but she just can't remember where she saw him last…

The man looks at the lighted lantern. "Where did this come from?" he asks himself out loud, quietly. Looking around the hallway, he tries to find traces of intruders.

Please, please, please, don't let him look up, Tenten begs silently.

The skinny dude takes a few cautious forward, his gold eyes gleaming in the dark like the door handles. Then he tilts his head up.

Staring at the two petrified genins, he smiles almost kindly. In a flash, yardfuls of thin, invisible wire spin up at Neji and Tenten and wrap and tie themselves around their wrists, ankles, necks, and waists, jerking them down onto the floor.

Without taking his eyes off his two victims, the skinny man says softly, "Kanningu. The sacrifices are here."


	4. Smirk

**A/N:** Okay, I know that I haven't updated for nearly, what, two years now? And I'm sorry. I really truly honestly undoubtedly didn't have the time – I had to grow up and go to high school. Ugh. And now, looking back at this fanfiction, I just want to cry to myself because it just looks so – so immature, so childish. It makes me not want to finish it. But the few people who begged me to finish, well, I just can't refuse you guys. My style has changed, and I've learned a lot – but here you go. Thanks, guys, for making me continue. 

Tenten stiffens. God, where has she heard that name before? _Kanningu_. It's like an icy dagger, plunging into her body. She just can't _move_.

The shadows and light are dancing together in some terrifyingly spectacular waltz on the walls and the man in front of Neji and Tenten smirks, a smirk that would have sent any non-ninja to the depths of despair.

But remember, these are ninja we're talking about.

And unless we're watching a super-slow Shippuden episode, ninja don't stand there and let people smirk at them.

And remember, Neji and Tenten are considered geniuses in their rank. You just don't smirk at them and live.

No, no, no. So Neji, never failing to surprise us all, he –

_smirks back._

Oh no, he didn't.

Oh, yes he did!

Neji spins around in a full 360 degrees circle, blue chakra whirling around him in wisps. Mr. Purple Hair is knocked down, but not for long. By now, Tenten's hands are full of kunai and other weaponry, and both Leaf ninjas are tensed, ready, like they've been for what seems like all their lives.

I'd love to describe to you the enthralling fight that ensued, but nooooooo. Neji and Tenten and the purple hair guy just _had_ to knock up a giant cloud of dust and poison and the like, so I can't. I can tell you, though, it was loud. Louder than the full-volume on your ipod, louder than Asian parents, louder than – can it be? – the fangirls. Oh, yes. Just stay with me here and try to wrap you head around this – louder than the Sasuke/Gaara/Itachi/Kakashi/Shikamaru/Neji/anyone else out there fangirls. I kid you not.

It seems like any other old ninja fight. Each team smirks at the other is copious amounts. Metal dings, chakra whooshes, and there are the familiar smacks of skin hitting skin.

Purple Hair Guy, Tenten realizes, isn't very fast. It's his inhumane strength that's his forte. It is strange, though, to her, that he would have so much might. _The way he's built_, she thinks, _with all that thin, lean muscle!_ – it's hard to believe. But it's true – he's punching through one of her maces and bending two of her kunai. Her smirk dissolves into a scowl, her teeth tightly clenched, as she watches him knock Neji off his feet.

Behind all the chaos of the fight, an elegantly-dressed man who is quite rotund steps out of the elaborate double doors.

- - - -

Gai stops his searching for a moment and weeps a little weep. "I am so very proud," he sobs. "So very, very proud of my two young blooming students! They have hidden themselves so extraordinarily well!"

"Oh, Gai-sensei!" cries you-know-who.

There has never been a more beautiful sunset.

- - - -

Out of degree 359 of his 360 degree vision, Neji sees a man – a shadow, really – tiptoe past him. _Crap_, he says to himself. _There are more of them coming_.

Neji turns his head to watch the man more clearly with his regular vision.

It's just a split second, really, but his concentration is broken. It takes but a fraction of eternity, but Neji lowers his guard and in the next moment finds, to his infinite horror, himself kneeling down on the ground, his chin smashing against the ground and his wrists chained behind him.

Desperately, although he would never admit it, Neji attempts to fling himself up like he had trained himself to do so many times. His body, though, won't cooperate. His head spins behind his eyes and his limbs seem to vibrate with some disconnection of the nerves. There's a foot is stamping on his head, and he can hear the diminishing sounds of Tenten fighting.

_Speed like Lee_, he muses to himself vaguely before everything fades to black.

- - - -

Any kind of review is appreciated.


End file.
